This is like an Olympic modern pentathlon for local seniors, but different.

The modern pentathlon is the invention of the same man who founded the modern Olympics, Baron Pierre de Coubertin. The ancient Olympic pentathlon was intended to showcase the best warrior skills; de Coubertin made it contemporaneous to the early 20^th century cavalry soldier, but added a sort of role-playing twist: the  modern pentathlon demonstrates necessary skills for escaping from behind enemy lines. The five events of the modern pentathlon include riding an unfamiliar horse, running, swimming, fencing and shooting a pistol.

All that is a bit much for people over 50, so the Prescott Senior Olympics have reduced the modern pentathlon to just the shooting part and dropped the “pentathlon” moniker. See? I told you it was different.

The Prescott Sportsmen's Club is hosting the rifle and pistol portions of the Prescott Senior Olympics, where competitors shoot .22 rimfire rifles and pistols and muzzleloader rifles at bullseye targets.

Last year almost everyone who participated earned a medal, so look through the list of events and pick one or more that appeal to you.  You can pick up a registration form at the range or download one at  www.cityofprescott.net/services/parks/sr_olympics. Registration is by mail and costs $20 for the first event (includes T-shirt and a goodie bag) and $5 for each additional event.

The shooting events for 2007 are:

      Aug. 19 (Sunday) - Precision Rifle - 120 shot English Match at 50 meters - 22RF Target Rifles - Any sights

      Aug. 20 (Monday) - Sporting Rifle - 60 shot Position Match at 25 & 50 Yds - 22RF Sporting Rifles - Scopes to 8 power

      Aug. 20 (Monday) – Blackpowder (muzzleloader) Rifle - 25 shot Standing Match at 25 yds - Iron sights - no in-lines 

      Aug. 21 (Tuesday) - Precision Pistol - 40 shot Match at 25 yds - Any 22RF pistol - Any sights - one-handed

      Aug. 21 (Tuesday) - Sporting Pistol - 30 shot Match at 25 yds - Any 22RF pistol - Any sights – in two-handed

You'll note that just the rifle/pistol portion of the Prescott Senior Olympics is a kind of shooting pentathlon of five optional events. No fencing or swimming required.

It's possible that Prescott senior Olympians may do better than George C. Patton -  yes, the WWII Army general - who competed in the very first modern pentathlon in 1912. He placed fifth, partly because of his less-than-stellar shooting skills. (Perhaps unrelated to his Olympic modern pentathlon fencing, right after the 1912 Olympics Patton became the last man to design a saber for the US cavalry -  not terribly useful, what with the simultaneous advent of the machine gun reducing the calvary into an instant anachronism.)

Back in Patton's day, the modern pentathlon took four or five days; the advent of the Impatient Age has reduced that to a single day in an effort to improve the event's commercial appeal. But even that isn't enough, and it looks like the modern pentathlon will go away after 2012.

No American has ever won an Olympic gold medal in modern pentathlon, nor has any senior ever won a gold medal in all five Senior Olympics rifle/pistol events.

Doesn't that inspire you to greatness?